The Bossier banner. [volume] (Bellevue, Bossier Parish, La.) 1859-1952, 1887-09-08

d uOmcHL CndG SHe InGenueu 10 20 10
the aid of the herds PROSTATE leader.
SO fierce was her aspect and actions;
but she simply circled around the bear
and the bull, believing and paving.
In the mean time both the eagles and
the wolves grew impatient of the delay
in the battles ending. The former
would now and then swoop down, as if
to hurry up the finish, uttering harsh
cries, and some waiting wolf would
steal from his covert and make closer
| and more courageous reconnaissance,
swapping and snarling in apparent dis
appointment.
"The bull and the bear rolled over
and over in the terrible death struggle.
Nothing was now to be seen but
heaving, CORY mass, dimly perceptible
through the dust. As to weight, the
two fierce and determined brutes must
have been about equally matched. The
bear had the advantage of greater
agility and the expert and telling use
of two terrible weapons, his teeth and
claws, while the bull represented more
infexible courage and greater powers
of endurance. The unfortunate result
of the bulls last charge on the grizzly
indicated that the latter's qualities
would in ew minutes more settle the
fight against the bull, and I was in
momentary expectation of seeing such
a termination, when, to my astonish-
ment, saw the bear relax his efforts,
roll over from the body of his PROSTATE
foe, and drag himself feebly away from
the spot. His appearance was sicken-
ing to me, so frightfully had he been
ripped and torn by the bulls horns.
The grizzly had no sooner abandoned
his attack on the bull than the latter
was on his feet, bearing himself as
erect and fierce as ever. If the BEARS
appearance was sickening, the bull s
was doubly so. He was covered with
blood from his forehead to his rump,
and his flesh and skin actually hung in
strips and tatters from his head and
sides. Giving his head shake that
scattered blood in shower about him,
and gave him a moments sight of the
reeking bear in front of him, he lowered
his head for the fourth time, and again
made one Of his terrific charges.
When the dying bear had dragged
himself away from the bull, the
eagles actually swoopcd down upon
him. and the wolves sprang from the
thicket into the opening and prepared
to pounce upon him. The bull scat
tered the impatient birds and animals
as he swept on his final charge against
the grizzly, and they hastily departed,
shrieking and snarling. The cattle
again added their believing to that Of
the bulls, and acted as if they under
stood the favorable turn the fight had
taken. AS the bull hurled himself
against the grizzly, the latter braced
himself for last desperate struggle.
He struck out wildly with his paws, and
the bull fell back with the force of the
grizzly's blows, presenting ghastly
; spectacle. His tongue hung from his
mouth, mangled mass of shreds. His
; face was ripped bare of flesh to the
bone, and his eyes were torn from theil
sockets. The charge was equally dis
astrous to the bear, he being ripped
completely open, and he sank to thu
ground writhing in his agony. Th'
! indomitable courage of the bull herr
prevailed. Blinded and crippled as h
was, he made but slight pause afte1
his fourth assault, and then dashet
wildly 1T his foe again. The grizzly
roar now seemed to be one of terror
With last frantic effort he sought t.
. make his escape, scrambling and stag
gering through the dust. But it wa
: useless. His great strength was gone
The bull plunged his horns again ant
> again into the huge form Of the dyini
brute as he lay stretched helpless il
u the dust. The bears muscles quivere
- and contracted. He drew his immens
: paws up once or twice in convulsiv
d clutches, raised his huge head, gave on
agonizing groan and fell back dead
J The victorious bull raised his bloody
J horribly disfigured crest, gave voice t
. a deep below, and, shaking his hea
triumphantly, turned and walked away
= !. His progress was slow and painful, an
~ he stopped and turned at short intel
! walls and listened, sif to know whethe
> his foe would renew the battle. B
= walked nearly hundred yards, wit
y his herd gathering and believing abo,
= him. Presently his head drooped frol
y its proud position. He spread his lee
ls apart as if to brace himself against th
' weakness that was stealing upon hin
= Suddenly he fell as if he had been sho
mangled. bleeding mass, and ws
/" soon dead.
!" 1.-The bull had no sooner left the des
= bear than the eagles and wolves wei
!, screeching, snarling and fighting on Il
- carcass The bull had not been des
~ five minutes when flock of vultur
- dropped down in their mysterious ws
~ - upon his body. When / climbed out
&c the tree to leave the scene of that te
rife combat the herd of cattle had di
- appeared on the plain, and two gre